Mobile device for removing water from playing fields



3,079,620 MOBILE DEVICE FOR REMOVING WATER FROM PLAYING FIELDS Filed Aug. 3, 1959 March 5, 1963 M. w. HUNTER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Mvelmoih W. Huni'er fitfo neg March 5,1963 M. w. HUNTER MOBILE DEVICE FOR REMOVING WATER FROM PLAYING FIELDS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 3, 1959 14- n Fig-4- United Snares Patent @hlice Fatented Mar. 5, l fig ezecutrix of said Melmoth W. Hunter, deceased Filed Aug. 3, 1959, Ser. No. 831,494- 6 Claims. (Qi. -4119} This invention relates to a mobile device for removing accumulations of water from playing fields or the like.

In the past it has been a common practice to postpone or cancel baseball games, for example, because of ac cumulation of rain water on the playing areas. As a re sult attendance at scheduled games was often substantially reduced if rain threatened, with a consequent substantial loss in gate receipts. Frequently games have been stopped, because of sudden downpours of rain, which might otherwise have been continued if some way had been devised to remove resulting puddles of water. Many outdoor games of various kinds would have been played to greater advantage to all concerned had it not been for wet playing field conditions.

One object of the present invention is to provide an improved mobile device by which playing fields may be quickly dried up or made more playable, either prior to or during scheduled programs of baseball, foot races, horse races, and other outdoor sporting events.

Another object of the invention is to provide a mobile liquid removing device which does not necessarily require pump or other power-operated means to remove water from the ground.

Amother object of the invention is to provide a mobile waterrernoving device of the character described which is easily manually or power operable, both to remove the water from the ground and to dispose of the collected Water.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a mobile unit of the character described which requires no complicated mechanisms, and is thereby correspondingly economical to manufacture, operate, and maintain.

These and other objects of the invention will be manifest from the following brief description and the accompanying drawings.

Of the accompanying drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the improved liquid-removing machine.

FlGURE 2 is an enlarged cross-section, taken substantially in a vertical plane through the turning axis of the machine, as viewed in the direction from the left of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is an end View, on an enlarged scale and partly broken away and in section, as viewed from the left of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a developed view of the peripheral wall of a roller or drum embodied in the machine, illustrating an arrangement of water absorbent sponges thereon.

Referring particularly to FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, of the drawings, the numeral 16 designates a hollow drum or roller having a cylindrical peripheral wall 11 of porous material, such as expanded sheet metal or heavy gauge wire screen, substantially solidly hacked and supported on peripherally spaced, rigid cross-bars i2, i2 01" metal tubing welded or otherwise attached between axially spaced rings 13, 13 of similar tubin The rings 13 may extend beyond the outer periphery of the porous wall 11 for rolling engagement with the ground surface S. On the outer periphery of the porous wall 11 may be a plurality of peripherally and laterally spaced rectangular pads l4, id of water-absorbent spongy ma erial, such as cellular vinyl resin, elatic material. The sponge pads 14 may be cemented, or otherwise afiixed to the porous metal wall ll, as illustrated in FIGURES 3 and 4, to extend radially outwardly substantially beyond the depth of the rings 13 from the outer surface of wall 11, so as to be compressed to predetermined limited extent against the ground surface S.

For manually operating the machine to roll the drum ill on a surface S, a U-shaped handle 15 may have inturned arms l6, 16 thereof attached to brackets 17, 17, non-rotatably ailixed on the opposite outer ends of a cenral shaft 18, which is journalled in bearings 19, 19 constituting the hubs of end spiders 20, 26 at the opposite ends of the drum. The end spiders include radial spokes 22 which are bolted or otherwise attached at the outer ends thereof to the respective rings 13.

For squeezing or expressing Water from the pads 14, a hollow idler roller 23 is yieldingly urged against the sponges, at "he upper side of the drum wall ill. Accordingly the roller may be keyed on a shaft 24 having opposite ends thereof journalled in bearings 25, 25, which are vertically slidably mounted in bearing brackets 26, 26 afiixed on the upper ends of vertically extending arms 27, 27, in turn aliixed at the lower ends thereof to the brackets 17, and reinforced at a suitable angle to the handle arms 16 by means of braces 23, 28. The brackets 26 are rigidly connected by tie rod or spacer 26a. Roller 23 may be yieldingly urged against the pads 14, as by springs 29 between the bearings 25 and relatively fixed parts 35 of the brackets 26. Upon rotation of the drum on a wet surface, therefore, the roller 23 will progressively express water from the sponge pads 14 at the top of the rum, through the porous wall 11, and the expressed water will fall by gravity toward the bottom of the drum.

For receiving this expressed water, an open-toppcd, semicircular trough or container 32 has hubs 33, 33, on axially opposite end walls 34, 34 of the same non-rotatably afiixed on drum shaft 18 to be normally gravitationally suspended in the lower part of the drum. The weight of the container, coupled with the spring-urged pressure of roller 23 against the sponge pads 14 at the top of the drum, tends to retain these parts in the position thereof best shown in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, and to present the handle 15 at a convenient angle for pushing the drum. If desired, a suitable drain plug 35 may be provided at a low point on one wall 34 of the container 32, for draining or cleaning the container in the suspended positions thereof shown.

in use of the improved machine for drying up puddles or wet areas of an outdoor playing field, the operator, by grasping the handle 15 in the relationship shown in FEGURES 1 and 3, pushes the drum 11 for continuous rolling contact of the water absorbent sponge pads 14 with the ground surface S. While the pads 14 are closely spaced for smooth rolling contact with the ground, FIG- URES 1 to 4 show the spaces between adjacent pads to be sullicient to permit surface liquid to flow between and around the respective pads to be absorbed from all sides thereof. As the water is picked up by the sponge pads, the s ring-pressed roller 23 continuously yieldingly compresses the pads to express the Water therefrom, which to a great extent will be exuded at the exposed edges of the pads. In any even the expressed water falls by gravity, downwardly through the closely spaced perforations in cylindrical wall 11, into the container 32 (see FIG- URE 3). When the container is filled the operator then pushes the machine to a convenient drain, where, by tilting the handle 15 upwardly, the container may be tipped as shown in chain-dotted lines in FIGURE 3, to dump the collected water W therefrom into the drain (not shown). The machine is then ready for further use in drying up the wet surface S.

The principle described may be utilized in modified forms (not shown) which include movement of resilient water-absorbent means on a continuous surface other than cylindrical. Also, it is contemplated that the waterabsorbent pads may be progressively staggered in overlapping relationship axially of the drum 10. Moreover, two or more such machines may be hooked in tandem to a tractor, for example. I

Other modifications of the invention may be resorted 7 to without departing from the spirit thereof, or the scope of the appended claims.

What isclaimed is: i

1. A mobile device for removing accumulated water from playing field or like surfaces, comprising a continuous perforated member, means for mounting said continuous member for continued movement against a wet surface, a plurality of closely spaced pads of resilient, spongy liquid-absorbent material aflixed n the surface engaging side of said continuous member to absorb liquid from said wet surface, means engageable with said wet surface as said continuous perforated member is moved against the same to restrict compression of said pads and thereby to facilitate retention of absorbed liquid therein, the spaces between adjacent said pads being sufiicient to permit the surface liquid to flow between and around the pads, means for expressing absorbed liquid from said absorbent pads through said perforated'member, said means for expressing including a pressure element yieldingly engaging said resilient absorbent pads against said continuous member, said spaces between said pads also permitting the expressed liquid to fiow freely from the edges of the pads and through the perforated member, and means for collecting the expressed liquid.

2. A mobile device for removing accumulated water from playing field or the like surfaces, comprising a rigid hollow drum having a peripheral wall of perforate material, means on said drum operable to roll thesame on a said surface, a plurality of peripherally and axially closed'spaced pads of liquid-absorbent spongy material affixed on said peripheral wall and engageable with a wet surface to absorb liquid therefrom, means progressively engage/able with said wet surface as said drum is rolled against the same to restrict compression of said pads and thereby to facilitate retention of absorbed liquid therein, the spaces between adjacent said pads being sufficient to permit the surface liquid to flow between and around the pads, spring-pressed roller means mounted on said drum for yieldingly engaging said pads against the backing of said peripheral wall to expressabsorbed liquid from the pads, said spaces between adjacent said pads also permitting said expressed liquid to flow freely from the edges of the pads and through the perforation s of said peripheral wall, and means in said drum for receiving the liquid expressed from said pads.

3. A mobile device for removing accumulated water from playing field or like surfaces, comprising a rigid hollow drum having a peripheral wall of perforate material, means on said drum operable to roll the same on a said surface, a plurality of peripherally and axially closelyspaced pads of liquid absorbent material afiixed ,on said peripheral wall and engageable with a wet surface to absorb liquid therefrom, the spaces between adjacent said pads being'sufiicient to permit the surface liquid to flow between and around the pads, springpressed roller means mounted on said drum for yieldingly engaging said pads against the backing of said peripheral wall to express absorbed liquid from the pads, said spaces between adjacent said pads also permitting said" expressed liquid to flow freely from the edges of the pads and thropgh the perforations of said peripheral wall,

supporting means on said drum for rolling support thereof on said surface with said outer periphery spaced therefrom, and means in said drum for receiving the liquid expressed from said pads, said pads beingjin peripherally extending, axially spaced rows thereof, said pads being said surface, a plurality of peripherally and axially closely spaced pads of spongy,'liquid-absorbent material affixed on said peripheral wall and engageable withawet surface to absorb liquid therefrom, meansprogressively engageable with said wet surface as said drum is rolled against the same to restrict compression of said pads and thereby to facilitate retention of absorbed liquid therein, the spaces between adjacent said pads being sufiicient to permit the surface liquid to flow between and around the pads, spring-pressed roller means mountedon said drum for yieldingly engaging said pads against the backing of said peripheral wall to express absorbed liquid from the pads, said spaces between adjacent said pads also permitting said expressed liquid to flow freely frorn the edges ofthe pads and through the perforations of said peripheral Wall, and means in said drum for receiving the liquid expressed from said pads, said pads being in peripherallyextending, axially spaced rows thereof, the pads of the adjacent said rows thereof being progressively staggered in overlapping relationship axially of the drum.

5. A mobile device for removing accumulated water from playing field or the like surfaces, comprising a rigid hollow drum having a peripheral wall of perforate material, means on said drum operable to roll the same on a said surface, a plurality of peripherally and axially closely spaced pads of spongy liquid-absorbent material afiixed on said peripheral wall and engageable with a wet surface to absorb liquid therefrom, the spaces between adjacent said pads being suflicient to permit the surface liquid to flow between and around the pads, spring-pressed roller means mounted on said drum for yieldingly engaging said pads against the backing of said peripheral wall to express absorbed liquid from the pads, said spaces between adjacent said pads also permitting said expressed liquid to flow freely from the edges of the pads and through the perforations of said peripheral wall, and means in said drum'for receivingthe liquid expressed from said pads, said drum having axially spaced periph- V i erally extending members projecting radially outwardly of the outer periphery of said peripheral wall, for rolling ,support'of the drum on said surface with said outer terial, means on said drum operable to roll the same on 7 a said surface, a plurality of peripherally and axially closely spaced pads of spongy, liquid absorbent material afiixed on said peripheral wall and engageable with a wet surface to absorb liquid therefrom, the spaces between adjacent said pads being sufficient to' permit the surface liquid to flow between and around the pads, spring-pressed roller means mounted on said drum for yieldingly engaging said pads against the backing of said eripheral wall to express absorbed liquid from the pads, the spacing pads permittingsaid expressed liquid to flow freely from the edges of the pads and through the perforations of said peripheral wall, and means in said drum for receiv surface with said outer per'phery spaced therefrom, said between opposing edges of adjacent: said pads extending radially outwardly beyond the depth of 2,290,217 said annular members from said outer periphery, where- 2,395,094 by said pads will be compressed to predetermined extent against said Wet surface as limited by said members.

References Cited in the file of this patent 5 390 UNITED STATES PATENTS 122,787 550,971 Hofifheins Dec. 10, 1895 371,524

6 Trindl et a1. July 21, 1942 Bcoharin Feb. 19, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS Australia Dec. 24, 1931 (Also cognate 4383/31) Germany July 29, 1901 Great Britain Apr. 28, 1932 

1. A MOBILE DEVICE FOR REMOVING ACCUMULATED WATER FROM PLAYING FIELD OR LIKE SURFACES, COMPRISING A CONTINUOUS PERFORATED MEMBER, MEANS FOR MOUNTING SAID CONTINUOUS MEMBER FOR CONTINUED MOVEMENT AGAINST A WET SURFACE, A PLURALITY OF CLOSELY SPACED PADS OF RESILIENT, SPONGY LIQUID-ABSORBENT MATERIAL AFFIXED ON THE SURFACE ENGAGING SIDE OF SAID CONTINUOUS MEMBER TO ABSORB LIQUID FROM SAID WET SURFACE, MEANS ENGAGEABLE WITH SAID WET SURFACE AS SAID CONTINUOUS PERFORATED MEMBER IS MOVED AGAINST THE SAME TO RESTRICT COMPRESSION OF SAID PADS AND THEREBY TO FACILITATE RETENTION OF ABSORBED LIQUID THEREIN, THE SPACES BETWEEN ADJACENT SAID PADS BEING SUFFICIENT TO PERMIT THE SURFACE LIQUID TO FLOW BETWEEN AND AROUND THE PADS, MEANS FOR EXPRESSING ABSORBED LIQUID FROM SAID ABSORBENT PADS THROUGH SAID PERFORATED MEMBER, SAID MEANS FOR EXPRESSING INCLUDING A PRESSURE ELEMENT YIELDINGLY ENGAGING SAID RESILIENT ABSORBENT PADS AGAINST SAID CONTINUOUS MEMBER, SAID SPACES BETWEEN SAID PADS ALSO PERMITTING THE EXPRESSED LIQUID TO FLOW FREELY FROM THE EDGES OF THE PADS AND THROUGH THE PERFORATED MEMBER, AND MEANS FOR COLLECTING THE EXPRESSED LIQUID. 